Process of drying macaroni and other products made from alpha paste of flour and water



May 6, 1930. w, QUIGGLE 1,756,992

' PROCESS OF DRYING MACARONI AND OTHER PRODUCTS MADE FROM A PASTE OFFLOUR AND WATER Filed Dec. 7, 1925 Refrigeration Battery 0) Steam Coils.

Patented May 6', 1930 N UNITED STATES PATENT lorries AZBTKUB'W. ouxeonn.or mmromamm imsorn, nssrenon 'ro THE cammm'rn GOMPm, OF MINNEAPOLIS,

' moms or name mcanoi'u m ornnn-rnonuc'rs noun AND warm:

Application filed December My invention relates to a process of dryingmarcaroni and other products made from a paste-of flour and water.

- The so-called alimentary paste I products are made by mixing togethera certain kind of wheat flour known as semolina with water and otheringredients whereby a stifi bu t molst paste is formed. This paste isforced throughdies by which the product'is molded. The

-10 dies for the macaroni make a hollow tube product and for thespaghetti and vermicelha closedcylinder product. Other paste products,such as noodles, are made with the same kind of paste but with adifierent type of machine. In any case, however, the product after beingformedmust be dried. In any casethe (product before it is ready forpackaging an the market must have nearly all of its water contentremoved by a drymg process. As heretofore practiced, and for a' verylarge number of years, the drying has been effected in large rooms wherethe product is hun up or otherwise disposed where it 5 is sub'ected toair at atmospheric temperatemperature, the air entering and leavingtheroom under very little :Eorced draft.

Drying by this process is very slow, :the entire operation running overthe better part of a week, consequently a large amount of space isnecessary in which to' effect the drying j operation.

j I- have discovered that the use of currents of heated air is effectivefordrying macaroni proyided the air is heated to a temperature higherthan the one naturally assumedto be proper. That is, to a temperature ofover one hundred fifty degrees Fahrenheit, as appears from my co-pendingapplication, Serial Num wasted and are, of course, subject to thevariations of atmospheric conditions due to weather conditions.

I have now discovered that it is possible to dry macaroni by the use ofcurrents of air most effectively where the same air is circulated in aclosed chamber, passing through i the macaroni being dried, having itsmoisture contentremoved and subsequently again passture or of slightlyhigher than atmospheric ber 394,741. In that process the air currentsafter being passed through the macaroni are.

- air that has passedthr'ough themacaroni will MINNESOTA, A CORPORATIONr301; a rns'rn or;

'z, 1925. Serial No. 78,580.

ing'through the macaroni with a continuous H repetition of the processuntil the macaroni it is practicable to reduce the pressure within thechamb er tosuch degree of vacuum as may be desirable, and that this hasthe efiect of decreasing the temperature of the air which can be usedwhile maintaining its relation to the boiling point at the pressureemployed constant. I

There are several ways in which the heat relatively may be given to theresidual air in the vacuum chamber, as, for example, the macaroni itselfmaybe heated to .a relatively high temperature at the dies andimmediately conveyed into the vacuum chamber, where the reduction inpressure will produce a relatively high vaporization point in the heatedmacaroni; and a very small amount of circu- 0 lation of the residualair, with withdrawal of moisture dur'ng that circulation, will pro, duceeifecti and complete drying. The residual .air may be heated bycirculating it within the vacuum chamber and passing it 5 through heatedsteam coils beforethe air goes through-themacaroni.

- In a preferred form of my process the v macaroni be placed upon traysas it comes from the machine, which trays are mounted upon a box-liketruck member with a side closure door, whichmember is open at top andbottom, forming a passage directly through the same and through thereticulate floors of the trays upon which the macaroni rests. Themacaroni may be introduced into the trays at normal temperatures orheated asabove stated. The trucks carrying the stock of, trays will bepassed through a sealing door into the vacuum chamber and'when the dooris vacuum chamber will comprise three compartments,r-a material receivincompart- U ment where the truckholding t e'trays. of material will bepositioned, which compartmentwillhave an opening at the botomjegistering with the bottom opening in the truck, and an opening at oneend extending into the secondcompartment. Here the water in the closedthe chamber will be air-tight. The, 1

be removed. This may be done bya spray of refrigerated water fallinginto the second compartment, of water absorbents such as calciumchloride may be employed in the second compartment. Preferably arefrigerated water spray will be used, as that is cheap and eflicient.The air passes downward through thesecond compartment to a heatingcompartment located directly below the material receiving compartment.This. will preferably comprise a battery of heated steam pipes throughwhich the air must pass in going drawing heated air from the steam coilsbe-' low through the material on the truck and forcing the heated airinto the water precipitating chamber where the spray of refrigerwillconvey the air from the chamber, first to the topthereo that free waterwill not be carried over.

ated water will cause most of the moisture in the air as it comes fromthe macaroni to be withdrawn or precipitated with the refrigeratedwater, this precipitation being effected by the sudden cooling of theair as it is forced into the precipitating chamber. The spray ofrefrigerated water ,and the precipitated water 30 will be drained awayfrom the bottom of the precipitating chamber and a vertical passagewayhaving a .baflle aszross the center of it precipitating and then to thebottom and into the heatin A diagrammatic viewis here given of anapparatus for carrying out my process. .No

claim is here made to any specific features of.

this apparatus, audit will be understood'that many diflerent forms ofapparatus or devices for effecting the steps of my process may .be

7 employed and be within the scope of my ini vention. 'In this diagram acasing 10.forms' 'eac an air-tight chamber which is provided with door11. This chamber is adapted-to be sealed by the door when closed tight.An exhausting device 12 is adapted to reduce the pressure within thechamber to any desired degree. The chamber has a drying-compartw ment13, a water precipitating compartment.

14 an'd.a heatin compartment 15. A truck 16 rovided wit a multiplicityof trays 17 having a reticulate bottom and each .adapted to receivetherein layers of macaroni,

is rolled into the chamber 13 upon rollers or castors 18 overlying thechamber'15 and particularly an opening 19 extendin through afloor'partition 20- betweenthe'c ambers 13 and 15. The chamber 14isseparated from the chambers 13 and 15 bymeans of a vertical partitionshown as ha'ving'outer walls 21 and 22 andan inner wall 23 with acontinuous paswith chamber so. v

. macaroni may, as above noted, he introduced:

the precipitating chamber 14 and by an opening 26 with the heatgenerating chamber 15. The chambers 13 and 14 are entirely separatedexcepting for a fan opening 27 having therein a fan 28 by means of whichthe air is drawn 7o from the chamber13 and forced into chamber 14 and'caused to circulate through chamber 14, into and through passageway 24,into and through chamber 15 and a battery. 'of steam pipes 29 therein,and through opening 19 and 7 the macaroni trays 17 on the truck 19.Power is communicated to the fan 28- from any appropriate source bymeans of a shaft 30. A water'pipe system 31 is connected by '-.a pipe 32with any appropriate refrigerating 30 means, indicated diagrammaticallyat 33. J ets of cold water indicated at 34 are sprayed 'or atomized intothe top ofchamber 14, and the water so forced 'in, together with thewater precipitated from the air, flowing throughsaid chamber, collectsin a receptacle 36 passing through a trap 37 to any desirable wastemeans 38: I

It will be apparent th at such an ap-.

the particular conditionsito be met may"re-" -quire, very rapid dryingof the macaroni or other pasteproducts may be efiected F-The cycle ofdrying operations, of course, comprise-s first, the provision of anair-tight chamber, indicated by 10, wherein the fair used as a moisturewithdrawingmedium may be reduced in pressure as desired second, the:introduction of the acaroni onithe trays or otherwise disposed into thischamber, which hot; third, the-exhaustion of the air from the sealedchamber to the desired pressure, which in practice may be around eightpounds to the a square foot; ,and, fourth, the circulation of thethe'residual air' within the drying. chamber; This latter step,ofcourse, involves the true. drying operation. Because of the lowprescapillarity. of the dried produ'ct,--that is,

. rendering thebody of the macaroni porous, which makes-it easier anduicker cooking. Also, owing to'the decrease 0 pressure of theatmospherethe'tendency otthe moisture of .the macaroni to move'freelyyoutwardly will be greatly increased and also the tendency 'J toincrease the porosity of the'macaroni. 1 Durin the course of thecirculation of the .airit first pass, heated to a desired temperature,hrough-and around the moist macaroni, where it-will become. loaded withwater vapor; it will then be forced into the recipitating chamber whereit will j be brought into contact with the. spray of refrigerated' Water(or with other drying me- 1' sure in the drying chamber the vaporizingf}and boiling point of the moisture in' the maca- 110 dium). This willeffect instant cooling of thesaturated air as it comes from the dryingchamber and cause precipitation of the moisture of contained thereinalong with the refrigerated water which is sprayed into theprecipitating chamber. The cooled air thus relieved of its water andvapor will pass first through the up-and-down passageway 24, where itwill be completely freed of any free water and will pass into the dryingchamber under the steam coils where it Wlll be distributr d by thebafiie 35, and after passing throug h the steam coils and being heatedto the d asired temperature will again go through the macaroni, so thatthe operation is continuous until sufiicient drying has been effected.

After the macaroni has been sufiiciently dried I have foundthatexcellent results-are obtained by permitting it to cool within thesealed drying chamber. It is better during the cooling operation not tohave the macaroni subject to draftsof air, and it is within the scope ofmy invention to cool the drying chamber by causing the cooled air of theprecipitating chamber to move around part1- 1 tioned walls of the dryingchamber instead of through the heating chamber and the macaroni. In thismanner-the macaroni can be cooled with reasonable despatch after it isdried, and when removed upon the truck or other means of introducin itinto the drying compartment it will be substantially in condition forimmediate packaging.

I claim: v p 1. The process of drying macaroni and other paste productswhich consists in positioning the macaroni within a closed chamber,reducing the pressure of the air content of said chamber by exhaustionof a portion of the air therefrom, continuously circulating the residualair in the chamber so as to cause it to pass through the macaroni, andwhen the macaroni is suihciently dried cooling the same in the closedchamber without circulation of air.

'2. The process of drying macaroni and other paste products whichconsists in positioning the macaroni within a closed chamthe residualair in the chamber so as to cause it to pass through the macaroni,heating said residual air at a point in the course of its circulation'before it has passed through the macaroni, and when the macaroni issufficiently dried cooling the same in the closed chamber withoutcirculation of air.

'4. The process of drying macaroni and other paste products whichconsists in positioning the macaroni within a closed chamber, reducingthe pressure of the air content of said chamber by exhaustion of aportion of the air therefrom, continuously circulating the residual airin the chamber so as to cause it to pass through the macaroni,withdrawing moisture from said air at a point in its circulation afterit has passed through the macaroni, heating said residual air at a pointin its circulation before it passes through the macaroni, and when themacaroni is sufficiently dried cooling the same in the closed chamberwithout circulation of air.

5. The process of drying macaroni and other paste products whichconsists in positioning of the macaroni within an airtight closedchamber and continuously cirv culating all the air in the chamber so asto cause it to pass through the macaroni, continuously withdrawingmoisture from the air so circulated until the macaroni is sufficientlydried, and thereafter cooling the macaroni in the closed chamber withoutcirculation of air.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature.

ARTHUR W. QUIGGLE.

ber, reducing the pressure of the air contemof said chamber byexhaustion ofa portion of the air therefrom, continuously circulatingthe residual air in the chamber so as to cause it to pass through themacaroni, withdrawing moisture from said air at a point in itscirculation after it has passed through the macaroni, and when themacaroni is sufliciently dried cooling the same "in the closedchamberwithout circulation of air.

3. The process of drying macaroni and other paste products whichconsistsin posi- '-tioning the macaroni within a closed cham':

ber, reducing the pressure of the air content of said chamber byexhaustion of a portion of the air therefrom, continuously circulating

